Weathering Jack Storm
Page 31
Now, Jack paused in his workings of the stretchy lace camisole, and he waited until she looked him directly into the eyes. “Mariss, I don’t know what that paternity test said. I’m assuming that if I were not the blood relation of my son, I would have heard it by now, if not from Meg, then from someone. But, if it turned out I were not, nothing would have changed.”
His forefingers rested on the ribs, just beneath her arms, and his thumbs made lazy circles on the sensitive tips of the curves pushed from the camisole.
“What do you mean?” Nerves of pleasure temporarily dulled as she cocked her head up to his gaze. “Nothing would have changed?”
“I mean that boy is mine. No matter what any paper says.”
Although that sentiment swelled her heart, she persisted, “I never would have sought you out if he hadn’t been…”
“I know Mariss. But I would have sought you out at some point. And, even if Tristan had been born fine. And, if it weren’t too late—if there were no Joel’s, I would have used any power I possessed to sway you.”
“To sway me?”
“Shhh…” His lips were on hers. Do we really have to talk right now?” His tongue swiped her bottom lip before his teeth lightly nipped. “I figure even with everyone running interference for us, it is just a matter of time before tiny fingers begin knocking on the door…or worse, your local news crew.”
Her fingers worked at the buttons on his shirt, kissing each new set of skin exposed before pushing it to the pile on the floor. Dropping to her knees, she unlaced the air Jordon’s or air Nikes, whatever they were, and they made a clunk to the floor. His hands went to his zipper, but she stayed them, doing the job herself, but fell into a bunk pulling him with her, before pulling at the tux pants.
“Mariss, you are beautiful. I never thought I had seen anything as beautiful as you walking toward me to say ‘I do.’ With the wind blowing your long hair, and your dress—holding Tristan’s hand.” He took her in below him, one knee staked between hers, and propped on those inked arms. “But this is pure beauty. Your hair, everywhere. Your everything spilling out, everywhere. That smile that I know is all mine…” His hands went again to his pants, “…and your shoes. I love those shoes. They couldn’t have been easy on the sand…”
As he reached for them, to slip them from her stockinged feet, she raised her legs enough to hook them into the waist of his loosened pants. With a shove, his pants were around his ankles—
The look on his face was incredulous. His mouth crushed to hers as he growled, “Hell that was sexy. Been holding out on me? Mariss, my honey?”
“No. You just always wear jeans way too tight to attempt that little trick…”
THE END
EPILOGUE
All in all, it had been a great Father’s Day. Leaning up enough to reach for the raspberry lemonade on the little table next to the poolside lounger, Jack watched Marissa clean up the patio. Picking up a few towels, she straightened and shot a sultry look his way. Ah yes, it was going to be a good Father’s Day later too.
The condensation slicking the cup wet his hands as he chugged the tart drink, replacing the many electrolytes sweated out in the Texas sun.
“Need some help?” he asked, but she shook her head as she disappeared into the house.
The area was still a disaster. His parents and Meg and her husband and brood had been over for a barbeque. Getting to his feet, he torpedoed into the water, enjoying the immediate cooling effect. Avoiding the area of the pool where Tristan and his first love were drifting on colorful floats, Jack headed for a far side of the pool to make his exit.
The stonework of the patio was hot on his feet even though they were cool from the pool, and he rushed about cleaning up the last of the abandoned plates and cups, and tossing the pool toys into the closet.
“Hey Dad?”
Tristan emerged from his love bubble and surprised Jack looked him over as he acknowledged his paternal name. Tristan’s legs were so long that his ankles and feet dangled into the water. Both he and his petite girlfriend were wearing shades so Jack couldn’t tell who was looking at who.
“Think you could get us some of that lemonade?”
“Trist! Don’t make your dad do it. It’s father’s day!”
Tristan’s girlfriend, Gabbi, had easily fit herself into their family. Her mother stayed gone on business more than not, and her father had not been in contact since she was a baby.
“Yeah, Tristan. Give your pop a break on Father’s Day,” Jack retorted.
A splash war ensued between Tristan and Gabby, probably because she had come to his defense. From the cooler, he extracted the plastic container and popped open the resalable lid. The splashes stopped and the thank you’s chorused as Jack set the two tumblers on the edge of the pool.
The chill of the cooled house hit him, and he squinted his eyes against the dimmer interior. Mariss stood at the sink with their fourteen month old daughter on her hip, and she raised her brows when he set the dirty dishes on the counter top.
“When did this one wake up?” he teased easing the baby into his own arms when she held her tiny arms out.
“Too soon,” Mariss retorted and continued to transfer dishes into the dishwasher.
“Leave ‘em. I will get them Mariss.”
“Nope. It’s your day.”
A tone sounded, and their daughter’s eyes lit. Jack moved to the booster chair and strapped her in then fetched a bowl from the microwave. Checking the temperature, he took a seat at the table and began to feed her. Like Tristan, June had dark hair and eyes, but she had the lighter complexion of Mariss.
“So you left Tristan and Gabbi alone out there?”
Scraping up another spoonful, Jack curved an amused smile, but knew better than to say anything. Mariss knew the uncertainties of an unplanned pregnancy, and she cut Tristan no slack, keeping a close watch on the young couple even though they were both barely fifteen.
“I’ve got them in my sights,” he assured, glancing out the window.
“So that meeting tomorrow, you have everything together?”
They had taken over the family business, the record label his parents had bought into many years back, and now solely owned. It remained small, but the talent signed was above and beyond the norm. Mariss who had never written a poem in her life, began to churn out lyrics for the catalog with the same ease his mother always had.
“Yeah.” Jack smiled. Dax’s band was going places, literally as of tomorrow. Jack would sign them off on their first European tour.
Jack felt lucky, having everything he could want for. A son that was the best a parent could ask for. A daughter that had come later in their life but was the apple of his eye. And a wife that had somehow fallen in love with him despite their rocky beginning. And his job, if he could call something he loved that much such, allowed him to be home with them practically twenty— four—seven.
After watching a movie with Tristan and Gabs as our son called his girlfriend, Jack put June down for bed while Mariss was on the phone with her father. The night was still early, and he leaned over the bannister making sure he saw two separate heads on the couch before treading to their bedroom.
Whether Mariss would actually go to bed and leave those two downstairs, or pretend to piddle around in the kitchen until Gabbi left at eleven remained to be seen.
Checking the clock on the face of his phone, he resigned himself to watching t.v. alone in bed for an hour and a half. Flipping aimlessly through the channels, he finally found something to stop on, and in boredom kept one eye on the movie and one eye on his tablet while going through his emails.
The baby cam came to life, and he came out of a doze to see Mariss on screen moving about as she changed the last diaper of the night. A press to his tablet showed the time to be ten minutes until eleven, and he ironically wondered if Tristan had managed a reprieve long enough to properly say goodbye to his girlfriend.
“Still awake?” Mariss entered the room clo
sing the door behind her. As if he wouldn’t be. Father’s Day came with special favors!
Something flew through the air between them landing on the bed at his feet, but he was too caught up watching her pull her shirt off to immediately retrieve it.
When she was snuggled up next to him wearing one of his tee-shirts, he pulled the card from the envelope. His fourth Father’s Day card of the day. Which made no sense.
Tristan. June. Marissa. And Marissa again?
“Thanks honey.” He leaned for a kiss, but she evaded it.
“It’s not from me.”
Confounded, he studied her face, searching for some sense in what she was saying. Her eyes were alight with excitement, and a smile twitched at her lips waiting to burst out.
“Are you telling me?”
“Four weeks along. I took the test this morning.”
“We are having another?” His eyes dropped to her stomach, knowing she wouldn’t be showing already, but anticipating the growing that would soon come. Squeezing her to him, he laid a long kiss on her lips, unable to get enough in his current state of delirium. “Mariss my honey, how did this happen?”
“I think we both know how it happened, Jack.”
Many, many favors on both sides between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. That’s how it had happened.
That and a minor miracle.
~THE END~
ROCK STAR READS
byLisa Gillis
Silver Strings Series:
D String SET (Available 2014)
Rising Sun
Half Moon
Rock Stars
G String SET (Available Now)
Jack Who? Perfect Storms
Weathering Jack Storm
Can’t get enough of those bad boys who rock and roll you all night long? Lisa Gillis’SILVER Strings Series promises many sleepless nights.
TheD String SETis a new adult, period romance set in a period of rock decadence and the spin series from it theG String SET, is a contemporary romance spicy enough to cause arrhythmia from hard core lust as well as tender tugging heartstring moments.
D String Books:
An epic trilogy about enduring friendships, the loyalty of family, and everlasting love.
The band, created by rebellious teen Jules Breaux began as something to fill the summer days, but through the next couple of years begins to fill the lapse in her life. Will the rise to fame of this band, that quickly became a fix for everything that felt wrong, begin to unravel the blanket of content that she finally feels?
Rising Sun #1 in theD String SET:
If money could buy happiness Jules would not need a bottle to navigate her relationship. If a perfectionist were perfect Matt would not fail at the one thing he wants most. They are friends with extraordinary benefits in a band never meant to be. But what happens when future rock god, Matt Loren, wants bandmate, Jules Breaux, as more than a bedroom plaything? When it all comes down to love, is it more than a four letter word?
Half Moon #2 in the D String SET continues where Rising Sun left off.
A glob of surfboard glue fixed the broken bed, but when it comes to emotional relationships—is the band the glue that holds personal relationships together? Will love, family, and friendship survive when the band begins to fall apart? When balsawood and rosewood collide in a very real fear of fate, which will reign?
Rock Starsis #3 in theD String Books SET
As teenagers, Jules Breaux and Matt Loren had taken their band from the clubs of LA, to arenas and stadiums all around the world. The sudden fame brought them together, pulled them closer, until their own emotional problems ultimately tore them apart.
Rock Stars picks up four years later. Once reunited they are faced with new problems that have sprung from their time apart, and the people they have become. Will a love, that continued to brightly burn through the years, be strong enough to withstand a new onslaught of trials?
TheD String SET begins in Los Angeles and spans a decade when rock music spawned legends, families lived the after effects of the draft, surfing primed, and a drought dried up the state. Time matures a rebellious teen into a talented young woman. Live a vinyl journey through the 70’s, a period of political unrest and memorable events. Watch as surfing and skateboarding become a culture. Listen as music changes, and rock and roll is reshaped. Walk the Boulevard of Broken Dreams—or fall face down.
G STRING BOOKS:.
Contemporary Romance. Spicy romance that will wring tears from both laughing and crying.
Jack Who? Perfect StormSis #1 in the set
An extraordinary set of circumstances brought them together long enough to change their lives. Although the day on the beach was clear, a perfect storm left them each with their own problems hidden from one another until one desperate day. Marissa has failed at many things but she will overcome this most important hurdle in her life even if it means turning to the one person she never wanted to trouble, her perfect storm: rock star Jack Storm.
Jack has not had an easy life in many ways, something that if he were to admit to the average person, even his closest friends would scoff. But from the first second he looked deep into the mirror of Marissa’s soul, he knew she “got” him. In fact at some point in their torrid tryst he could pathetically remember whispering, “You get me…no one else does…” The problem was, she never seemed to want him—until now when she needed him. And that was enough to make him cautious in riding the swells of this new storm.
Weathering Jack Storm
Marissa and Tristan in his life changed his outlook. Jack felt needed. He welcomed the responsibility. He embraced the love and companionship. And he quickly whisked them to his home in LA. But to Marissa, her future seemed as mysterious as dusk’s shadows in the dark luxurious guitar shaped pool. There was no doubt this could be her dream house, her dream life with the man she loved. Not so dreamy was all that she was beginning to see that came with him.
The crazy hours of a very active life. Mostly, a moody and presumptuous rock star.
And a man who had two personas as she was soon forced to concede to herself as well as his relatives who see her as an opportunist.
G String SET Available now on Kindle!
#1 Jack Who? Perfect Storms
#2 Weathering Jack Storm
D String SET Coming 2014
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Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19<
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CHAPTER 20
CHAPTER 21
CHAPTER 22
CHAPTER 23
CHAPTER 24
CHAPTER 25
CHAPTER 26
CHAPTER 27
CHAPTER 28
CHAPTER 29
CHAPTER 30
CHAPTER 31
CHAPTER 32
CHAPTER 33
CHAPTER 34
CHAPTER 35
CHAPTER 36
CHAPTER 37
CHAPTER 38
CHAPTER 39
CHAPTER 40
CHAPTER 41
CHAPTER 42
CHAPTER 43
EPILOGUE
ROCK STAR READS
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